An administrative office specialist, sometimes called an administrative assistant, has a vital role in making sure an office operates smoothly and efficiently. Organizational and communicational skills are essential, and almost every organization relies on qualified administrative assistants' skills to support their operations.

Administrative assistants must be able to communicate clearly and effectively. Very often, they need to be the voice of an organization. They deal with clients and help to solve problems or customer service issues. Much of their communication may take place over the phone; although, they may need to meet with some clients face-to-face. Other types of communication include customer letters to clients, contacting vendors, or speaking to advertising agencies on behalf of the company.

Administrative assistants earn a mean annual wage of $53,020, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. But to be one, applicants must have a bachelor's degree or a high school diploma degree. However, a master's degree is sure to benefit in the long run.

What Does an Administrative Office Specialist Do

There are certain skills that many administrative office specialists have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed interpersonal skills, writing skills and organizational skills.

Learn more about what an Administrative Office Specialist does

How To Become an Administrative Office Specialist

If you're interested in becoming an administrative office specialist, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 46.8% of administrative office specialists have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 5.2% of administrative office specialists have master's degrees. Even though most administrative office specialists have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.

Learn More About How To Become an Administrative Office Specialist
Top Administrative Office Specialist Jobs Near You

Administrative Office Specialist Career Paths

Average Salary for an Administrative Office Specialist

Administrative Office Specialists in America make an average salary of $35,177 per year or $17 per hour. The top 10 percent makes over $43,000 per year, while the bottom 10 percent under $28,000 per year.
Average Administrative Office Specialist Salary
$35,177 Yearly
$16.91 hourly

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Roles and Types of Administrative Office Specialist

The role of an administrative office specialist includes a wide range of responsibilities. These responsibilities can vary based on an individual's specific job, company, or industry.Here are some general administrative office specialist responsibilities:

  • Ensure that the front office is open during hours of operation; maintain the department credit card
  • Produce printed material using high speed monochrome
  • Input reservation details into r25 to plan events as requested, including reserving longwood space, property

There are several types of administrative office specialist, including:

Office Administrator

Role:

As office administrator, you've got to lay down the law for your team. Sure, no one likes a tough boss, but they need to know what goals they're aiming for, and that's where you come in. You'll need to divide and conquer on some tasks, so the team doesn't feel overwhelmed.

The biggest, and probably toughest, part of your job is making sure your team is consistantly performing. You have to find a nice balance for employees so they don't get burned out on work, while also making sure they're not playing Solitaire on their computer.

Office administrators typically work somewhere between 35-40 hours a week. Generally, they won't work more than that. This means you might get to go home a little early some days. Our fingers are crossed that you get off a little early on Friday, so you can kickstart your weekend on a high note.

  • Average Salary: $37,423
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree

Administrative Coordinator

Role:

Administrative coordinators help the company to handle the general administration of the company. You will handle the basic administrative duties like answering incoming calls, interacting with the clients, and giving solutions when needed to their issues.

You will also be responsible for maintaining and making the office organized. Similarly, you will welcome visitors and direct them to the appropriate department. You will provide administrative support to the management. As a result, you will monitor and coordinate the accounting activities which you will prepare internal reports for management.

Good knowledge of finance and accounting to help you prepare internal reports for management is required. An administrative coordinator must have good interpersonal skills to be able to relate with clients and good communication skills. Similarly, you must be able to compose and edit written materials. You will make an average of $19.77 an hour or $41,129 yearly.
  • Average Salary: $40,599
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree

Administrative Support

Role:

Administrative support workers, sometimes called administrative support specialists, take care of clerical tasks in an office that helps their employer serve the public. Most administrative support workers work for government offices, although they can also work for private companies. They handle tasks that help organize the office such as storing files and inputting data into the payroll system. Administrative support workers need to be strong communicators because they handle internal communications, for example by scheduling meetings, and communicate with the public via phone and email. Administrative support workers are often highly knowledgeable about procedures in the office they work for so they can help customers and coworkers with their questions.

There are a few different ways to become an administrative support worker. About half have a bachelor's degree in business or administration. However, many do this job with only a high school diploma.

Administrative support workers usually need a few years of administrative experience, for example as assistants. Only then can they apply for an administrative support position, which usually pays around $33,023 a year.
  • Average Salary: $37,692
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree

States With The Most Administrative Office Specialist Jobs

Mouse over a state to see the number of active administrative office specialist jobs in each state. The darker areas on the map show where administrative office specialists earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.

Average Salary: Job Openings:

Number Of Administrative Office Specialist Jobs By State

RankStateNumber of JobsAverage Salary
1California4,471$42,559
2Florida3,199$31,879
3Texas2,704$39,936
4New York2,487$33,479
5Massachusetts1,642$38,251
6Pennsylvania1,626$31,935
7Illinois1,573$41,648
8Virginia1,457$29,651
9North Carolina1,404$31,560
10Georgia1,281$27,389
11Ohio1,245$32,269
12Washington1,122$42,523
13Michigan1,104$34,337
14Maryland1,067$33,499
15New Jersey974$34,918
16Arizona940$35,707
17Minnesota919$39,692
18Indiana876$28,972
19Colorado844$37,857
20Wisconsin829$36,545
21Tennessee740$31,121
22Missouri721$33,906
23Oregon646$40,132
24Iowa609$33,361
25South Carolina579$28,247
26Connecticut503$41,449
27Utah476$37,658
28Alabama447$32,994
29Kentucky411$32,262
30Louisiana397$29,397
31Oklahoma360$29,787
32Kansas337$35,378
33Nebraska321$35,936
34Nevada296$38,165
35Arkansas294$29,036
36Idaho286$33,618
37New Mexico261$30,500
38New Hampshire231$33,282
39Montana230$32,469
40Alaska220$43,788
41Mississippi185$31,514
42Maine177$34,386
43Delaware172$33,722
44West Virginia167$30,153
45North Dakota139$41,553
46Hawaii136$38,588
47Rhode Island133$39,311
48Wyoming116$39,691
49Vermont102$36,429
50South Dakota97$32,290

Administrative Office Specialist Education

Administrative Office Specialist Majors

32.0 %

Administrative Office Specialist Degrees

Bachelors

46.8 %

Associate

29.2 %

High School Diploma

12.1 %

Top Colleges for Administrative Office Specialists

1. Western Carolina University

Cullowhee, NC • Private

In-State Tuition

$3,926

Enrollment

9,835

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Business
Criminal Justice
Psychology
Accounting
English

2. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

In-State Tuition

$51,354

Enrollment

7,083

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Computer Science
Business
Biology
Education
General Education, Specific Areas

3. Ball State University

Muncie, IN • Private

In-State Tuition

$9,896

Enrollment

15,529

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Liberal Arts
Biology
Psychology
Accounting
Criminal Justice

4. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-State Tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Biology
Business
Computer Science
Health Care Administration
Communication

5. Bowling Green State University

Bowling Green, OH • Private

In-State Tuition

$11,105

Enrollment

13,729

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Biology
Liberal Arts
Business
Psychology
Criminal Justice

6. Cedar Crest College

Allentown, PA • Private

In-State Tuition

$39,216

Enrollment

1,303

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Education
Business
Biology
Criminal Justice
Psychology

7. Morgan State University

Baltimore, MD • Private

In-State Tuition

$7,900

Enrollment

6,404

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Liberal Arts
Business
Education
Biology
Psychology

8. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-State Tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Biology
Business
Liberal Arts
Communication
Psychology

9. Siena Heights University

Adrian, MI • Private

In-State Tuition

$27,124

Enrollment

2,035

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Business
Criminal Justice
Liberal Arts
Biology
Accounting

10. University of Akron

Akron, OH • Private

In-State Tuition

$11,463

Enrollment

13,676

Admissions
Most Popular Majors
Liberal Arts
Business
Accounting
Psychology
Criminal Justice

Top Skills For an Administrative Office Specialist

The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 27.1% of administrative office specialists listed customer service on their resume, but soft skills such as interpersonal skills and writing skills are important as well.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Administrative Office Specialist Resume templates

Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Administrative Office Specialist templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Administrative Office Specialist resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.

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Administrative Office Specialist Resume
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Administrative Office Specialist Resume

Administrative Office Specialist Demographics

Administrative Office Specialist Gender Distribution

Female
Female
86%
Male
Male
14%

After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:

  • Among administrative office specialists, 85.7% of them are women, while 14.3% are men.

  • The most common race/ethnicity among administrative office specialists is White, which makes up 66.2% of all administrative office specialists.

  • The most common foreign language among administrative office specialists is Spanish at 50.8%.

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Best States For an Administrative Office Specialist

Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as an administrative office specialist. The best states for people in this position are Alaska, California, Washington, and Illinois. Administrative office specialists make the most in Alaska with an average salary of $43,788. Whereas in California and Washington, they would average $42,559 and $42,523, respectively. While administrative office specialists would only make an average of $41,648 in Illinois, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.

1. Alaska

Total Administrative Office Specialist Jobs: 220
Highest 10% Earn:
$48,000
Location Quotient:
1.79

2. Wyoming

Total Administrative Office Specialist Jobs: 116
Highest 10% Earn:
$49,000
Location Quotient:
1.32

3. Washington

Total Administrative Office Specialist Jobs: 1,122
Highest 10% Earn:
$52,000
Location Quotient:
1.05
Full List Of Best States For Administrative Office Specialists

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Top Administrative Office Specialist Employers

Most Common Employers For Administrative Office Specialist

RankCompanyAverage SalaryHourly RateJob Openings
1Minnesota State Fair$39,378$18.9328
2University of Minnesota$38,318$18.4263
3Caliper$36,805$17.697
4The University of Alabama$33,826$16.267
5MITRE$33,261$15.997
6Virginia.gov$33,228$15.9751
7Metropolitan State University$32,970$15.858
8Abacus$32,683$15.716
9Brazosport College$32,454$15.608
10Virginia Commonwealth University$32,350$15.5521